Pentecost 21 C: Gratitude and Grace

Posted by DJL on Oct 3, 2016 in Dear Partner | 6 comments

Luke 17:11-19

Dear Partner in Preaching,

“I’m grateful.”

That was the regular response of a colleague and friend of mine of a few years past to my casual question, “How are you?”

It took me by surprise. Not just the first or second time, but almost every time. Eventually, of course, I wasn’t so much surprised, as I was struck by the simplicity and power of this statement. It wasn’t the answer I expected. Indeed, we usually expect little more than “fine” or “pretty good” or maybe once and a while “great” when we ask this conversational placeholder, “How are you?”

“I’m grateful.” My colleague chose her words with care. She wanted to make a point. That gratitude is not only a response to good fortune but also a choice we make. Certainly that’s true of the leper in today’s Gospel reading. Ten were healed. Ten, no doubt, were surprised at this discovery. Perhaps some where overjoyed. Perhaps some celebrated. Perhaps others ran to tell their family and friends. Perhaps a few even took it for granted. Who knows? What we do know is that one not only felt thankful but decided to actually give voice to those emotions, to express his gratitude to Jesus and to God. Gratitude is indeed a response to the blessings of life, but it is also a choice to see those blessings, name them, and express our gratitude in word and deed.

And giving voice to gratitude a choice with consequences, for as we express our gratitude, we affect those around us, even shape the reality in which we live.

Think about it. Gratitude is not the only emotion we might choose to express in response to the events of any given day. There are reasons for gratitude, yes, and also reasons for fear, for anger, for frustration, grief, for regret, for apprehension. Each and all of these colors our experience, makes its appearance on the stage of our lives, and perhaps each has a place and role to play from time to time. But we choose how much stage time to grant each of these emotions by giving them expression, and as we do so we give them power in our lives.

And that’s what’s key: we are making choices. We may feel a range of emotions to all kinds of circumstances and situations, but we choose which to give expression. When confronted by someone who is angry, do we respond with anger as a form of self protection or do we choose empathy, trying to understand the emotions of the other, and gratitude that the person was willing to be honest? When we are set back in some endeavor at school or work, do we express frustration or a resolve to keep at it and gratitude for what we’ve learned through this setback? These are choices.

A colleague of mine is living with a form of incurable brain cancer. After much treatment and prayer, it has gone into what is called “partial remission” – it is not growing, but it cannot be removed. One day it will grow again and take his life. But not today. And he is not only grateful but also shares that gratitude. I suspect he has moments where he feels bitter or resentful or fearful or any of the other range of emotions that would be completely understandable, but he chooses to live gratefully, viewing each day as another gift of grace and giving voice to his gratitude.

Maybe that seems like a tall order, something beyond the reach of most of us, available onto to a few spiritual giants. Or maybe it is a response that, having been practiced over a lifetime, now comes easily to my colleague and could come just as easily to each of us.

Because here’s the thing: gratitude, like all of our other options, becomes easier to choose as we practice it. Gratitude, like faith and hope and love and commitment, are not inborn traits that some have and others don’t, but rather gratitude is more like a muscle that can be strengthened over time. And as you practice giving thanks and more frequently share your gratitude, you not only grow in gratitude but create an example for others. More than that, you create a climate in which it is easier to be grateful and encourage those around you to see the blessings all around us.

“I’m grateful.” Take a moment to scan the headlines and you’ll see how scarce – and how desperately needed – more expressions of gratitude are. Accusation, excuses, venting anger – these seem to have hold of our culture. Indeed, we seem to live in the age of complaint, whether shared in person or increasingly through the venue of social media. What a powerful response gratitude is in these situations.

In this light, saying “I’m grateful” does not simply express our thanksgiving but actually gives voice to a counter-cultural witness that has the power to shape those around us, push back the tide of resentment and complaint that ails us, and make room for a fresh appreciation of God’s renewing, saving grace.

So what if this week, Dear Partner, we asked folks to start practicing their gratitude and develop greater thanksgiving-oriented “muscle memory” by responding for the rest of this month to the question, “How are you,” with the simple but powerful reply, “I’m grateful.” There’s more we could do, of course, inviting people to start a gratitude list that they add to, review, or say aloud each night before they go to bed, for instance. But for now, perhaps just the challenge and encouragement to say “I’m grateful” is enough. It may surprise them – and those around them – how meaningful this simple practice can be.

If you decide to go this route, two additional words of counsel. First acknowledge that, depending on circumstances, this may be difficult for some. Overwhelmed by grief or loss, for instance, some may have difficulty in giving voice to gratitude just now. And that’s okay. It will come. Gratitude is not a command, it’s an invitation, one God never tires of making. So for now, assure your people that if this seems beyond them, God understands and, for the meantime, the rest of the congregation will give thanks in their stead.

Second, I’d encourage you to “rehearse” practicing gratitude in the congregation this Sunday. You say, “How are you?” and invite the congregation to respond, “I’m grateful.” Do this three times, perhaps at the end of the service, and at the conclusions of the third, make bold to share Jesus’ words, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.”

Thanks for your good work and good faith, Dear Partner. I am indeed grateful for you and even more grateful to God that the church has leaders like you to give witness to both gratitude and grace in such a time as this.

Yours in Christ,
David